WTF is this rank?

I was pleasantly surprised by this comic. The story is intriguing ("In this issue, the main character dies!"), and the apparent rivalry between the two brothers sets up an interesting conflict. The scene transitions were a bit clunky in places, and the torture scene is over the top, but overall this was a solid first issue.

As for Haunt himself, I actually like the design, although I prefer Ryan Ottley's version over Todd McFarlane's. While I initially assumed this was a Spider-Man clone, the power set is actually pretty interesting, and I like the very organic, primal looking costume for the character. While the idea of a man combining with his ghost brother to form a superpowered entity is, believe it or not, an old concept (see Captain Triumph), it is not exactly well trodden ground, and I can see Robert Kirkman getting a great deal of mileage out of the character.

The art from Ottley is, as always, fantastic. The faces are all very expressive, and the action sequences are dynamic without reaching Liefeld levels of ridiculousness. I am also quite the fan of Greg Capulo's panel layouts. He is not as original as Frank Quitely or J.H. Williams III, but he manages to walk a fine line between traditional layouts and more progressive work, and he does a great job using his layouts to draw attention to important scenes. The only downside is the inking, which is a bit messy and seems to take away from the fluidity of Ottley's pencils. It does add a "gritty" touch to the book, but I would prefer to have Cliff Rathburn here rather than McFarlane (odd that the two problems I have with the art are connected to the biggest name on the book).

I am still undecided as to whether I will continue with this series. It has some interesting ideas, and Ottley is always a lot of fun, but I do not know if it is enough to keep me entertained. Nonetheless, I think it was a solid first issue, and I would recommend checking it out.

WTF is this rank?

I was pleasantly surprised by this comic. The story is intriguing ("In this issue, the main character dies!"), and the apparent rivalry between the two brothers sets up an interesting conflict. The scene transitions were a bit clunky in places, and the torture scene is over the top, but overall this was a solid first issue.

As for Haunt himself, I actually like the design, although I prefer Ryan Ottley's version over Todd McFarlane's. While I initially assumed this was a Spider-Man clone, the power set is actually pretty interesting, and I like the very organic, primal looking costume for the character. While the idea of a man combining with his ghost brother to form a superpowered entity is, believe it or not, an old concept (see Captain Triumph), it is not exactly well trodden ground, and I can see Robert Kirkman getting a great deal of mileage out of the character.

The art from Ottley is, as always, fantastic. The faces are all very expressive, and the action sequences are dynamic without reaching Liefeld levels of ridiculousness. I am also quite the fan of Greg Capulo's panel layouts. He is not as original as Frank Quitely or J.H. Williams III, but he manages to walk a fine line between traditional layouts and more progressive work, and he does a great job using his layouts to draw attention to important scenes. The only downside is the inking, which is a bit messy and seems to take away from the fluidity of Ottley's pencils. It does add a "gritty" touch to the book, but I would prefer to have Cliff Rathburn here rather than McFarlane (odd that the two problems I have with the art are connected to the biggest name on the book).

I am still undecided as to whether I will continue with this series. It has some interesting ideas, and Ottley is always a lot of fun, but I do not know if it is enough to keep me entertained. Nonetheless, I think it was a solid first issue, and I would recommend checking it out.